Tag Archives: john adams

SamuelAdamswas an AmericanRevolutionaryleaderandpatriot. In themid-1760s, he draftedprotestsagainstGreatBritain’sStampandTownshendActsandauthoredpamphletsdesigned to stir up sentimentagainsttheBritish.AdamshelpedorganizetherevolutionarySons of Liberty,wasthechiefinstigator of theBostonTeaParty,served on theContinentalCongress,andsignedtheDeclaration of Independence.Howwas he related to JohnAdams?More…Discuss

Flag Day

America’s Flag Day, celebrated on June 14, commemorates the date in 1777 when John Adams spoke the following words before the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. ‘Resolved, that the Flag of the thirteen United States shall be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the Union be thirteen stars, white on a blue field, representing a new constellation.’ Over the years, there have been 27 versions of the American flag. The present version was adopted on July 4, 1960, when Hawaii became the 50th state.

This photo was taken on September 11, 2003 at the Baghdad International Airport (BIA), Baghdad, Iraq, US Air Force (USAF) as personnel from the 447th Air Expeditionary Group (AEG) Command Staff raise an American flag during a memorial service dedicated to those who lost their lives September 11th, 2001.

Mozart is considered one of the greatest composers of European classical music, having written an astonishing number of works in almost every musical genre during his short life. A child prodigy, he began composing music by the age of five and was touring and performing before royalty within a year. He later settled in Vienna, where he reached the height of his success. At the age of 35, he succumbed to an unknown illness that remains a source of speculation. What are some of the theories? More…Discuss

pelodelperro******Stuttgart Chamber Music Ensemble******The Introduction and Allegro (1905) is one of the few pieces by Ravel that has remained more or less in the shadows — save in the minds of harpists — throughout the last century. While it is certainly not among the composer’s most striking works, it is nevertheless a pleasant enough showpiece that looks forward to the raw sensuality of Daphnis et Chloé while hearkening back with great affection to the music of Chabrier and, especially, Franck. The full title of the work is Introduction and Allegro for Harp, Accompanied by a Quartet of Strings, Flute, and Clarinet. Although it is often conveniently designated a septet, it is really a kind of miniature (10-minute) harp concerto, complete with virtuoso writing and an extended central cadenza for the instrument. Chamber performances of the work, in fact, are few and far between; it is far more frequently heard in the orchestra hall with a full complement of strings. The general simplicity of form and harmony have led some to conclude that the Introduction and Allegro might have originally been composed as a test piece for the Paris Conservatoire; certainly it did not stand out sufficiently in Ravel’s own memory for him to include it in his list of works.

The brief Très lent introduction presents two themes, the first for the woodwinds in leaping parallel thirds, the second an inverted-arch-shaped gesture sung by the strings in octaves. Presently a shimmering texture of arpeggios and woodwind double-tonguing takes over, inviting the cello to explore another melody before the harp rejoins the lush musical fabric.

Twenty-six bars into the piece the Allegro commences. Now, as the harp makes an extended solo exploration of the melody presented earlier by the strings, a sonata form begins to take shape. A second, hemiola-ridden theme arrives in the woodwinds, accompanied pizzicato by the strings. The development of this material takes place in the usual fragmentary manner, building to an excited fff climax that breaks away abruptly as the harp assumes center stage with a cadenza. The recapitulation is quite straightforward, and the work ends without extensive fireworks or bombast of any kind. The Introduction and Allegro was first performed in late February 1907. [allmusic.com]

Google Art Project works by Jean-Léon Gérôme Google Art Project works by Jean-Léon Gérôme From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository (click to access and view the Art collection, or take a virtual museums tour! All available here at euzicasa!)

Set design by Léon Bakst for the world premiere of the ballet Daphnis et Chloé (music by Maurice Ravel), Paris 1912.

Daphnis et Chloé is a ballet with music by Maurice Ravel. Ravel described it as a “symphonie choréographique” (choreographic symphony). The scenario was adapted by Michel Fokine from an eponymous romance by the Greek writer Longus thought to date from around the 2nd century AD. Scott Goddard published a contemporary commentary that discussed the changes to the story that Fokine made to prepare a workable ballet scenario.[1] The story concerns the love between the goatherd Daphnis and the shepherdess Chloé. The ballet is in one act and three scenes.

At almost an hour long, Daphnis et Chloé is Ravel’s longest work. In spite of the ballet’s duration, four discernable leitmotifs give musical unity to the score.[1][2] The music, some of the composer’s most passionate, is widely regarded as some of Ravel’s best, with extraordinarily lush harmonies typical of the impressionist movement in music. Even during the composer’s lifetime, contemporary commentators described this ballet as his masterpiece for orchestra.[3] Ravel extracted music from the ballet to make two orchestral suites, which can be performed with or without the chorus. The second of the suites, which includes much of the last part of the ballet and concludes with the “Danse générale”, is particularly popular. When the complete work is itself performed live, it is more often in concerts than in staged productions.

performed by the CalArts Contemporary Music Ensemble, under the direction of Stephen Moskoimagescommon people? not very much…I published another video with the same music, directed by the author himself here: http://youtu.be/-pycrSsBqUc